It’s a battle of words between the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo state and the opposition APC over the management of the state finances and economy in general. BAYO AGBOOLA reports.
All is not well for now between the present administration of Engineer Seyi Makinde- led government and the opposition in the state on what is the real position of things in the state economy regarding its impacts, be it positive or otherwise on the state/citizens in the last three years in Oyo.
To the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, the Gov Seyi Makinde-led government is the best thing to ever happen to the state considering the fact that it consistently injected not less than N11 billion every month into the state economy through prompt payment of state and local government workers salaries alone as well as the regular payment of pension and gratuities of retirees and pensioners with which the administration has injected at least N462billion within the last 42 months.
Opposition queries state government
According to Oyo APC in a statement by its publicity secretary. Comrade Wasiu Sadare, the challenge is coming against the backdrop of President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent revelation about state governors hiding under the unavailability of local government autonomy law to hijack funds meant for the running of the third tier of government and that this allegation has been denied by some state governors excluding Gov Makinde who the main opposition party in his state has claimed to be culpable.
According to the APC, “That some governors feed fat on the resources of the local government councils in their respective states is no longer news but President Muhammadu Buhari only voiced out when he could no longer stomach the executive rascality being exhibited by the likes of Gov Makinde. Right from the moment he was sworn in on May 29, 2019, Gov Makinde did not hide his determination to subjugate the third tier of government as the first proclamation he made was the sacking of the elected council officials to pave the way for his mission of domestic recolonisation.
“Oyo state gets an average of N5 billion in monthly allocation from Abuja while the administration of Gov Makinde claimed to have raised the internally generated revenue (IGR) of the state to over N3billion since it came on board in 2019. With N336billion directly accrued to the state government, Gov Makinde still allegedly seized the whole of N170b local government council funds and as if this was not enough, they have allegedly taken over N200billion loans at different times.”
APC stressed further that, “If we are to be silent on the billions of grants and subventions which the PDP administration has received so far, it is safe to say that a whopping sum of N706b has been realised but all the state government can account is the salaries paid to workers and appointees.”
PDP fires back
However, the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state wasted little or no time in lashing back at the APC, stressing that the opposition party is among other things suffering from acute level of retrograde and anterograde amnesia while maintaining that the opposition is like a dead chicken hoping to still eat a grain of maize.
In a statement by its publicity secretary, Engr Akeem Olatunji, the party commended Gov Makinde for according to it, “Being an exceptionally prudent manager of human and material resources having successfully jerked up the state internally generated revenue without placing additional burden on the masses amidst economic turbulence foisted on poor Nigerians by the APC led federal government.”
It stated further that, “The opposition party should quit playing to the gallery and get its facts before going to further expose itself before the now wiser people of the state.”
According to PDP, Oyo APC lacked basic economic management strategy with its futile attempts at discrediting prompt payments of salaries, pension and gratuities by Governor Makinde and that the best way for any informed person who is aspiring to manage public resources is to know how to successfully trap down local investments, reduce capital flight, allow free flow of cash within the system to bolster the velocity of revolving funds.
It emphasized that, “There is no amount of peddling of sheer falsehood, malicious media campaign or deliberate misinformation that can rescue the state chapter of the APC from the inevitable final burial that awaits it come 2023 as the people of Oyo state have become wiser and politically conscious of state affairs to know the clear difference between a party that thrived on false propaganda and practically performing one. “
Engr Olatunji said, “As far as we are concerned in the PDP, we would not give too much attention to our noisy neighbours who do not even know the very basics of the job of an opposition party. They thought playing opposition party in a 21st century is all about sustaining unabated false propaganda and deliberate misinformation of the public to discredit every single policy or programme of government.
“It is sadly evident from the press release by APC that they are just playing to the gallery by bounding up figures around in a desperate and failed attempts to discredit the Seyi Makinde -led performing PDP government.There’s no other way to boost local economy of any state than injecting money into it just the way Engr Seyi Makinde is consistently pumping an average of N11 billion through payment of salaries of civil servants and local government workers as well as executing various developmental projects which in turn allow free flow of money in circulation.
Party showcases performances
“In case the leadership of APC and their gubernatorial candidate, Senator Teslim Kolawole Folarin, have forgotten Governor Seyi Makinde- led PDP administration offset arrears of gratuities of Pensioners from 2010 up to 2014 of which the then APC government failed to pay. We need to remind them to rescue them from their self inflicted delusions. Gov Makinde has injected N462 billion in the last 42 months apart from pension and gratuities to our senior citizens or retirees while several road projects both completed and ongoing amounting to 500 Km and other developmental projects like light Oyo, construction/ rehabilitation/ renovations of schools, independent power project, 351 primary health centres, remodeling of Adamasingba Stadium, upgrading of state owned hospitals, ongoing construction of 110 Km Rasheed Ladoja Circular road, free education for our children, infrastructural developments in schools, upgrading of Emmanuel Alayande College of Education to university, sole ownership of LAUTECH and offsetting of salary arrears of her staff and lecturers owed by Ajimobi- led APC government which runs to over a billion naira and paying off of Osun state equity on the school and many others have gulped several billions of naira with prudency and value for money as the PDP government’s watchword,” PDP stated.
Berating Oyo APC of conducting itself in such a shameful manner who specializes in squandering hard earned family resources and bringing reproach to the family name, it added that APC media team are lazy relying on sustained misinformation.
PDP therefore tasked APC to check latest state by state debt profile from the Office of Debt Management and Federal Ministry of Finance on what Oyo state currently incures in debt and that the federal government agencies have data on debt portfolio of each state and how much accrue to the state so far.
“As at the last count, Oyo state debt was N177 billion of which N127 billion was inherited from the last administration of APC in local debt and $138 Million in foreign debt. Despite the unprecedented infrastructural development already recorded in the state in less than four years, the present government has offset about $40m out of the $138m owed by the late Ajimobi- led APC government. If APC must say anything in the public domain with the slightest atom of dignity if any, it should be grateful first, to Governor Seyi Makinde for not playing the APC style of vindictive politics otherwise many of them would have been languishing away in jail by now. Secondly, Oyo APC must bury its head in shame and come to terms with the fact that PDP in Oyo state is the mother that is busy scrubbing their filth and restoring the state on the path of prosperity.”
With the unfolding events in the recent times across Oyo state, it is glaring that these last minute hues and cries on the state economy is not for the general interest of the state or citizens but for selfish and cheap popularity sake which would not augur well for Oyo state.
